2015.

It's been a year of progress, protest, and pure entertainment. In the waning days of the year, we countdown to the start of new beginnings, and look back on the year that passed.

These are the 15 Biggest Stories of 2015:

15. Pope Francis

Since his election in 2013, Pope Francis has continually made headlines for both his humble nature and his progressive views as head of the Catholic church. He spoke about the church's views in 2014, saying that while homosexuality remains intrinsically immoral, every homosexual person should be treated with respect and love.

The Pope occupied media headlines again in 2015 when he embarked on his first Papal trip to the United States in September. He gave a speech to a Joint session of the United States Congress, the first Supreme Pontiff to do so. During his visit, he also made stops at the White House, St. Patrick's Cathedral, and the National September 11 Memorial and Museum.

14. Josh Duggar

Josh Duggar, and his famous family, has been in the headlines since the premiere of 17 Kids and Counting in 2008. He had developed an image of a God-driven, family-centered Christian promoting purity and a unique relationship with God. In May 2015, In Touch Weeklyreported that Jim Bob Duggar had told Arkansas State Police that Josh had molested five underage girls between the years 2002 and 2003. The family, and TLC received heavy backlash in the wake of the news, citing Duggar going relatively unpunished and the promotion of a hypocritical Christian family. Shortly after the scandal broke, TLC announced that the show was canceled and all production had stopped.

In August, Duggar made headlines again when the hacker group called "The Impact Team," released the names and email addresses of thousands of Ashley Madison users, a website for people looking to have an affair. Duggar was revealed to be one of a handful of high-profile subscribers.

"I have been the biggest hypocrite ever. While espousing faith and family values, I have secretly over the last several years been viewing pornography on the Internet and this became a secret addiction and I became unfaithful to my wife" ... "the last few years, while publicly stating I was fighting against immorality in our country I was hiding my own personal failures," Duggar said in a statement on the family's website.

13. Miss Universe

It was the crowning seen 'round the world.

On December 20, the 2015 Miss Universe pageant was held at the Planet Hollywood Resort and Casino in Las Vegas, Nevada and broadcast to millions of people around the world. 80 women from 80 countries competed in multi-hour television special.

The stunning final five contestants included Miss USA Olivia Jordan, Miss Australia Monika Radulovic, and Miss France Flora Coquerel. But the climax of the evening was the final crowning, and it had come between Miss Colombia Ariadna Gutierrez and Miss Philippines Pia Wurtzbach.

For two minutes, the world stood behind Miss Colombia as she donned the iconic crown and took the ceremonial closing walk. It seemed as if the next Miss Universe had been crowned - but then, host Steve Harvey took the stage to announce that he had made a mistake and that Miss Philippines Pia Wurtzbach was in fact the true winner of the 2015 Miss Universe pageant.

Cue the awkward removal of the crown from Miss Colombia's head and the subsequent memes that followed.

12. Planned Parenthood

It seems that in 2015, everyone was talking about Planned Parenthood. Whether they were pro-life, pro-choice, or simply had no opinion, everyone had something to say about the fight to defund the program.

The largest single provider of reproductive health services in the United States, including abortions, many of Planned Parenthood's programs center on reproductive health and sex education.

In December 2015, the US Senate passed legislation to defund Planned Parenthood in 52-47 vote. After the decision, supporters and activists took to Twitter, boasting the hashtag #plannedparenthood and #istandwithplannedparenthood in support of the organization.

11. Bill Cosby

For much of the 80s and early 90s, Bill Cosby came to us every night as the comical, charismatic, and charming patriarch of a successful and upwardly mobile African-American family on The Cosby Show. Through stand-up and other television projects, Cosby continued to remain a legacy in the entertainment industry.

In late 2014, media attention focused on accusations of rape and sexual assualt committed by Cosby, and throughout 2015 the number of accusers had risen to 50. In the wake of the allegations, syndication of The Cosby Show ceased and further development on a future Cosby television project was scrapped.

10. Cuba

Since 1961, at the height of the Cold War, relations between the United States and Cuba have been nothing if not tense. These deteriorating terms have had a ripple effect for 50 years, as stricter travel regulations and trade embargoes have prevented travel between the US and Cuba, including by Cuban-American immigrants.

After diplomatic talks at the end of 2014, trade embargoes relaxed and the US began importing a limited number of goods including cigars and rum. In April, the Obama administration announced that it would remove Cuba from the United States "Terror Sponsor" list, also permitting travel between the two countries. Relations between the two countries were formally re-established in July with the opening of a Cuban embassy in Washington D.C. and an American embassy in Havana.

9. Cecil the Lion

Cecil was a male South African lion living primarily in the Hwange National Park in Zimbabwe. On July 1, 2015, Walter Palmer, an American dentist and big-game hunter, killed Cecil, and took the lion's head as his hunting trophy.

The photo made its way through the webs of social media and backlash toward Palmer was immediate. A social media petition named "Justice for Cecil" has grossed close to 1.2 million signatures calling on Zimbabwe's government to stop issuing hunting permits for endangered animals. The outrage also convinced three of the largest airlines in the U.S., American, Delta, and United, to voluntarily ban the transport of hunting trophies.

8. Star Wars: The Force Awakens

It has been 10 years since the release of the last Star Wars movie.

In 2005, Lucasfilm released it's sixth installment of the film franchise, Star Wars Episode III: Revenge of the Sith, concluding the prequel series that had been Episodes 1-3.

In 2012, The Walt Disney Company made the landmark purchase of Lucasfilm - George Lucas's production company - and therefore the rights to the entire Star Wars franchise. It was then that the idea for a sequel was born.

The most anticipated movie of the year, Star Wars Episode VII: The Force Awakens opened in theaters on December 18, 2015 culminating in a staggering $529 worldwide box office in the film's first weekend.

Star Wars Episode VII is set to be released in 2017.

7. Caitlyn Jenner

With the swelling of support for gay rights and the precedent set by the Supreme Court decision Obergefell v Hodges, came Caitlyn Jenner.

In April 2015, Caitlyn - formerly known as Bruce - in an interview with Diane Sawyer, came out as a trans gender woman saying, "for all intents and purposes, I am a woman." Jenner went on to discuss the gender dysphoria she has experienced since her youth and her exploration of her gender identity prior to her marriage to former spouse, Kris Jenner.

In July, Jenner was awarded the Arthur Ashe Courage Award at the 2015 ESPY Awards. ESPN executive producer Maura Mandt explained the decision saying that "she has shown the courage to embrace a truth that had been hidden for years, and to embark on a journey that may not only give comfort to those facing similar circumstances, but can also help to educate people on the challenges that the transgender community faces."

Caitlyn Jenner is the third LGBT to receive the award, and the first from the trans-community.

6. Syria

In September of 2015, Turkish journalist Nilufer Demir captured a photo of a three-year-old Syrian boy, Alan Kurdi, lying lifeless on a beach near Bodrum, Turkey.

In a matter of hours, the photo of Kurdi became a symbol for the Syrian refugee crisis and the consequences of the Syrian Civil War. By July, numbers of refugees were estimated to have swelled to well over 4,000,000 with most residing in Turkey, Lebanon, Jordan, and Iraq.

Demir's photo launched a movement to open borders to Syrian refugees, with number well over 500,000 seeking asylum in the European Union, the largest numbers were recorded in Germany and Sweden, with over 89,000 refugees and 62,000 refugees by August, respectively.

5. Same-Sex Marriage

Since 1993, support for gay rights and same-sex marriage has become the cornerstone of political platforms and campaign strategies. States progressively legalized civil unions or same-sex marriage and many others began to recognize same-sex marriages performed in other states.

In June 2015, the Supreme Court heard the case Obergefell v. Hodges, in which Obergefell sued a funeral director for the right to be recognized as the deceased person's spouse. In a landmark decision, the US Supreme Court ruled in 5-4 decision that the fundamental right to marry is guaranteed to same-sex couples under the 14th Amendment of the Constitution.

#lovewins

4. Paris

In the weeks before Thanksgiving, tragedy struck the world when a series of coordinated attacks occurred in Paris and it's northern suburb Saint-Denis on November 13, 2015. At approximately 9 pm, the attacks began as three suicide bombers struck the Stade de France, followed by suicide bombings and mass shootings at cafes, restaurants, and a concert hall in Paris.

The Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant claimed responsibility for the attacks that killed 130 people and wounded 368 others, citing the French airstrikes on ISIL targets in Syria and Iraq.

In response to the attacks, the US House of Representatives passed the American SAFE Act of 2015, making it more difficult for Syrian and Iraqi refugees to enter the country. President Obama committed to accepting 10,000 additional refugees over the entirety of 2016.

#PrayForParis

3. Donald Trump and Bernie Sanders

In 2015, two candidates stood out in the race for the 2016 Presidential election.

Bernie Sanders, the second in the running for the Democratic nomination, made headlines in July when his campaign stop in Madison, Wisconsin drew a crowd of 10,000. The massive crowds continued through the summer as his stops in Arizona, Seattle, and Portland amassed audiences of 11,000, 15,000, and 28,000, respectively.

Donald Trump, the Republican nominee front runner, occupied headlines himself with his highly controversial campaign and commentary. Extremely outspoken, Trump proposed a ban on Muslim immigrants and refugees in the wake of the San Bernardino shootings. In early July, he resounded the Birthers when questioned about whether or not Obama was born in the US, Trump responded saying, "I really don't know, I mean, I don't know why he wouldn't release his records."

2. Mass Shootings and Gun Violence

In 2015, social media and headlines were littered with stories of gun violence and mass shootings.

In May, 9 people were killed in a gunfight in Waco, Texas.

In June, Dylan Roof opened fire on the attendants of the Mother Emmanuel AME Church in South Charleston. Police determined that roof perpetrated the crimes according to a white supremacist agenda, of which he wrote about extensively online.

In October, Chris Mercer took to the campus of Umpqua Community College with an AR-15 assault rifle and other various handguns. 9 people were killed before Mercer turned the gun on himself.

In December, three masked assailants - two of them later identified as Syed Farook and Tashfeen Malik - opened fire on the Inland Regional Center, a work facility serving developmentally disabled adults. 14 people were killed before Farook and Malik were apprehended by the police.

1. ISIL

In 2015, ISIL dominated the news and social media, and made an appearance in several of the stories above.

In January, it was reported that members of ISIL had infiltrated the European Union and disguised themselves as civilians and in March, Boko Haram swore allegiance to ISIL, giving them an official presence in Nigeria, Niger, Chad, and Cameroon.

ISIL later claimed responsibility for the 2015 Paris terrorist attacks.